Base station interface device of distributed antenna system

ABSTRACT

A base station interface device including an interface board, which is located in a housing and determines an upper portion of a first surface as a first mounting location and an upper portion of a second surface opposite to the first surface as a second mounting location, including a relay connector wherein one end is exposed to the upper portion of the first surface and the other end is exposed to the upper portion of the second surface; a base station signal matching unit mounted on the first mounting location and including a first connector coupled to the one end of the relay connector; and a base station signal processing unit mounted on the second mounting location and including a second connector coupled to the other end of the relay connector.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This is a continuation of U.S. application Ser. No. 15/421,751 filed onFeb. 1, 2017, which claims priority from Korean Patent Application No.10-2016-0078703, filed on Jun. 23, 2016 (now Korean Patent No.10-1802974 issued on Nov. 23, 2017), in the Korean Intellectual PropertyOffice, the contents of which are incorporated herein by reference intheir entirety.

BACKGROUND 1. Field

One or more embodiments relate to a base station interface device of adistributed antenna system

2. Description of the Related Art

A distributed antenna system (DAS), which is an example of a relaysystem relaying a communication between a base station and a userterminal, has been used to extend service coverage of the base stationso as to provide a mobile communication service even to a shadow areawhich inevitably appears either indoor or outdoor environments.

The DAS, after receiving a base station signal from a base station andamplifying the base station signal based on a downlink path, transmitsthe amplified base station signal to a user terminal in a service area,and amplifies a terminal signal received from the user terminal in theservice area based on an uplink path and transmits the amplifiedterminal signal to the base station. Matching and processing of signalstransmitted and received between the base station and the DAS, forexample, power control, low-noise amplification, or filtering of signalsare essential to realize such a relay function of the DAS. Therefore, abase station interface device including a base station signal matchingunit and a base station signal processing unit is used for the DAS.

According to an existing base station interface device, it is difficultto efficiently use a space and miniaturize the device because a basestation signal matching unit and a base station signal processing unitare arranged in layers, and furthermore, it is difficult for a managerto install and manage the device, and to protect a connection betweenthe units because the units are connected to each other by cables.

SUMMARY

One or more embodiments include a base station interface device of adistributed antenna system (DAS) capable of efficiently arranging a basestation signal matching unit and a base station signal processing unit,easily connecting the units, and stably protecting the connection fromoutside.

Additional aspects will be set forth in part in the description whichfollows and, in part, will be apparent from the description, or may belearned by practice of the presented embodiments.

According to an aspect of the inventive concept, there is provided abase station interface device including: an interface board, which islocated in a housing and determines an upper portion of a first surfaceas a first mounting location and an upper portion of a second surfaceopposite to the first surface as a second mounting location, comprisinga relay connector wherein one end is exposed to the upper portion of thefirst surface and the other end is exposed to the upper portion of thesecond surface; a base station signal matching unit mounted on the firstmounting location and comprising a first connector coupled to the oneend of the relay connector; and a base station signal processing unitmounted on the second mounting location and comprising a secondconnector coupled to the other end of the relay connector, wherein atleast one of the first and second connector comprises a tapered portion,wherein a diameter of the tapered portion becomes larger toward the end.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the relay connector may include: arelay connector contact wherein one end contacts a first connectorcontact of the first connector and the other end contacts a secondconnector contact of the second connector; a relay connector bodyconfigured to surround the relay connector contact; and a relayconnector insulating member located between the relay connector contactand at least a part of the relay connector body.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the first connector may includethe tapered portion, wherein a diameter of the tapered portion becomeslarger toward the relay connector, and the relay connector body mayinclude a complementary tapered portion, wherein a diameter of thecomplementary tapered portion becomes smaller toward the firstconnector.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the second connector may includethe tapered portion, wherein a diameter of the tapered portion becomeslarger toward the relay connector, and the relay connector body mayinclude an elastic member which is disposed on a tip toward the secondconnector and capable of being elastically deformed in a directioncrossing a coupling direction of the second connector and the relayconnector when the second connector is coupled to the relay connector.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the relay connector may penetratethrough a main body of the interface board, wherein the one end isexposed to the upper portion of the first surface and the other end isexposed to the upper portion of the second surface.

According to an exemplary embodiment, at least a part of the relayconnector may be inserted in and coupled to the first connector.

According to an exemplary embodiment, at least a part of the relayconnector may be inserted in and coupled to the second connector.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the first connector may include: afirst connector contact configured to contact a relay connector contactof the relay connector; a relay connector body configured to surroundthe first connector contact; and a first connector insulating memberlocated between the first connector contact and at least a part of thefirst connector body.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the first connector body mayinclude: a first cap comprising the tapered portion, wherein a diameterof the tapered portion becomes larger toward the relay connector; and afirst support unit configured to support the first cap.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the second connector may include:a second connector contact configured to contact a relay connectorcontact of the relay connector; a second connector body configured tosurround the second connector contact and form the tapered portion,wherein a diameter of the tapered portion becomes larger toward therelay connector; and a second connector insulating member locatedbetween the second connector contact and at least a part of the secondconnector body.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the interface board may include afirst sensing connector, wherein one end is exposed to the upper portionof the first surface, and the base station signal matching unit mayinclude a second sensing connector coupled to the first sensingconnector.

According to an exemplary embodiment, at least a part of the firstsensing connector may be inserted in and coupled to the second sensingconnector.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the second sensing connector mayinclude a sensing connector tapered portion, wherein a diameter of thesensing connector tapered portion becomes larger toward the firstsensing connector.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the second sensing connector mayinclude: a second sensing connector contact configured to contact afirst sensing connector contact of the first sensing connector; and asecond sensing connector body configured to surround the second sensingconnector contact, wherein the second sensing connector contact and atleast a part of the second sensing connector body directly contact toeach other.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the base station interface devicemay further include a control unit configured to sense an electricalconnection between the interface board and the base station signalmatching unit by coupling the first sensing connector to the secondsensing connector.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the base station interface devicemay further include a fan unit, which is disposed adjacent to the basestation signal matching unit, configured to remove heat from the basestation signal matching unit, and the control unit may drive the fanunit when the electrical connection between the interface board and thebase station signal matching unit is sensed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

These and/or other aspects will become apparent and more readilyappreciated from the following description of the embodiments, taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view from the front of a base station interfacedevice, according to an embodiment of the inventive concept;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view from the back of the base station interfacedevice of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a main structure taken along lines A-A′of the base station interface device of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a main structure of the base stationinterface device of FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view of a relay connector accordingto an embodiment of the inventive concept;

FIG. 6 is a partial cross-sectional view of a first connector accordingto an embodiment of the inventive concept;

FIG. 7 is a partial cross-sectional view of a second connector accordingto an embodiment of the inventive concept;

FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional view of a first sensing connectoraccording to an embodiment of the inventive concept; and

FIG. 9 is a partial cross-sectional view of a second sensing connectoraccording to an embodiment of the inventive concept.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Reference will now be made in detail to embodiments, examples of whichare illustrated in the accompanying drawings, wherein like referencenumerals refer to like elements throughout. Like reference numeralsrefer to like elements throughout the drawings. It will be understoodthat, although the terms first, second, etc. may be used herein todescribe various elements, these elements should not be limited by theseterms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element fromanother. In the description of the present disclosure, certain detailedexplanations of the related art are omitted when it is deemed that theymay unnecessarily obscure the essence of the inventive concept. As usedherein, the term “and/or” includes any and all combinations of one ormore of the associated listed items. Expressions such as “at least oneof,” when preceding a list of elements, modify the entire list ofelements and do not modify the individual elements of the list.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view from the front of a base station interfacedevice 100, according to an embodiment of the inventive concept, FIG. 2is a perspective view from the back of the base station interface device100 of FIG. 1, FIG. 3 is a perspective view of a main structure takenalong lines A-A′ of the base station interface device 100 of FIG. 2, andFIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a main structure of the base stationinterface device 100 of FIG. 3. FIGS. 1 to 3 show any one of a pluralityof base station signal matching units 130 and any one of a plurality ofbase station signal processing units 140 that are separated from eachother, but it is only for convenience of explanation, and therefore,each of the separated base station signal matching unit and the basestation signal processing unit may be coupled with a corresponding unitfor operation as illustrated in FIG. 4. Hereinafter, the base stationinterface device 100 will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4.

Referring to FIGS. 1 through 4, the base station interface device 100may include a housing 110, an interface board 120, at least one basestation signal matching unit 130, at least one base station signalprocessing unit 140, a combination distribution unit 150, a control unit160, and a fan unit 170.

The housing 110 may accommodate the interface board 120, the basestation signal matching unit 130, and the base station signal processingunit 140 inside and may protect them from outside.

The housing 110 may have a structure with both sides opened based on anx-direction, and slot-type mounting locations may be determined by aplurality of housing spaces partitioned by inner sidewalls and/or guidemembers, the slot-type mounting locations on which the base stationsignal matching unit 130 and the base station signal processing unit 140are mounted by the interface board 120.

For example, a first housing space 111 may include a first mountinglocation 112 in which one of the base station signal matching units 130is mounted on a first surface 120 s 1 of the interface board 120 by theinterface board 120, and a second mounting location 113 in which thebase station signal processing unit 140 corresponding to the basestation signal matching unit 130 is mounted on a second surface 120 s 2facing the first surface 120 s 1. The base station signal matching unit130 may be slidably mounted on the first mounting location 112 throughone open side, and the base station signal processing unit 140 may beslidably mounted on the second mounting location 113 through the openside. Accordingly, the base station signal matching unit 130 and thebase station signal processing unit 140 corresponding to each other maybe arranged in the same plane and in a row along the x-direction.

As another example, a second housing space may include a third mountinglocation in which the fan unit 170 is mounted on the first surface 120 s1 of the interface board 120 by the interface board 120. The thirdmounting location may be higher than the first mounting location 112 onwhich the base station signal matching unit 130 is mounted based on az-direction. Therefore, the fan unit 170 may be disposed on an upperportion of the base station signal matching unit 130.

As another example, a third housing space may include fourth and fifthmounting locations in which the combination distribution unit 150 andthe control unit 160 are mounted on the second surface 120 s 2 of theinterface board 120 by the interface board 120. The fourth and fifthmounting locations may continuously follow the second mounting location113 on which the base station signal processing unit 140 are mountedbased on a y-direction.

FIGS. 1 through 4 illustratively show mounting locations and mountingstates of the base station signal matching unit 130, the base stationsignal processing unit 140, the combination distribution unit 150, thecontrol unit 160, and the fan unit 170, but a mounting location and amounting state of each of the units may vary.

The interface board 120 may be disposed in a direction crossing thex-direction in the housing 110, for example, the y-direction, and mayperform an interface function for signal transmission between componentsby being electrically connected to various components such as the basestation signal matching unit 130 and the base station signal processingunit 140 via a connector or a cable.

For example, the interface board 120, which is connected to the basestation signal matching unit 130 and the base station signal processingunit 140 corresponding to each other through a relay connector 121, maytransmit a base station signal (downlink signal) passed through the basestation signal matching unit 130 to the base station signal processingunit 140, or may transmit a terminal signal (uplink signal) passedthrough the base station signal processing unit 140 to the base stationsignal matching unit 130.

The relay connector 121 may be coupled to a main body of the interfaceboard 120 penetrating through the main body of the interface board 120,and thus, one end of the relay connector 121 may be exposed to the firstmounting location 112 toward the base station signal matching unit 130,and the other end of the relay connector 121 may be exposed to thesecond mounting location 113 toward the base station signal processingunit 140. The relay connector 121 may be coupled to each of a firstconnector 131 of the base station signal matching unit 130 and a secondconnector 141 of the base station signal processing unit 140, and mayfurther include a tapered portion or an elastic member to compensate amisalignment during coupling. A specific structure of the relayconnector 121 will be described in detail later below referring to FIG.5.

The base station signal matching unit 130 may match signals transmittedand received between at least one base station and a distributed antennasystem (DAS) including the base station interface device 100. When thebase station interface device 100 is connected to a plurality of basestations, the base station signal matching unit 130 may be provided inthe base station interface device 100 corresponding to each of the basestations. However, the inventive concept is not limited thereto.

In an example of a downlink path in which base station signals receivedfrom a base station are transmitted to a user terminal through a DAS,the base station signal matching unit 130 may reduce a power level of abase station signal having high power such that the base station signalis processed by the base station signal processing unit 140 and/oranother node devices (for example, a remote device, an extension device,etc.) of the DAS.

Meanwhile, the base station signal matching unit 130, to be electricallyconnected to the corresponding base station signal processing unit 140through the interface board 120, may include the first connector 131corresponding to the relay connector 121 provided in the interface board120. The first connector 131 may include a tapered portion capable ofcompensating a misalignment due to an error in location or magnitudewhen the first connector 131 is coupled to the corresponding relayconnector 121. The first connector 131 will be described in detail laterbelow referring to FIG. 6.

The base station signal processing unit 140 may perform a predeterminedsignal process on a base station signal output from the correspondingbase station signal matching unit 130, or may perform a predeterminedsignal process on a terminal signal transmitted from another node deviceof a DAS. When the base station interface device 100 is connected to aplurality of base stations, the base station signal process unit 140 maybe provided in the base station interface device 100 corresponding toeach of the base stations. However, the inventive concept is not limitedthereto.

In an example of a downlink path, the base station signal processingunit 140 may perform various signal processes such as low-noiseamplification, filtering, gain control, or amplification on a basestation signal output from the base station signal matching unit 130 tomeet a service condition of a preset frequency band.

The base station signal processing unit 140 may include the secondconnector 141 corresponding to the relay connector 121 to beelectrically connected to the corresponding base station signal matchingunit 130 through the interface board 120. The second connector 141 mayinclude a tapered portion capable of compensating a misalignment due toan error in location or magnitude when the first connector 131 iscoupled to the corresponding relay connector 121. The second connector141 will be described in detail later below referring to FIG. 7.

As such, in the base station interface device 100, the base stationsignal matching unit 130 and the base station signal processing unit 140corresponding to each other may be arranged in the same plane as amonolayer. Furthermore, even if errors occur in locations of units orconnecting members when the base station signal matching unit 130 andthe base station signal processing unit 140 are connected to each otheron both surfaces of the interface board 120 through the relay connector121 without a cable, the base station signal matching unit 130 and thebase station signal processing unit 140 may be stably connected to eachother because a tapered portion compensating the errors is formed in atleast one of the relay connector 121 and connectors corresponding to therelay connector 121.

Therefore, the base station interface device 100 may efficiently use thelimited space in a housing, may be miniaturized, may improve conveniencefor a manager, and may stably maintain a connection state between thebase station signal matching unit 130 and the base station signalprocess unit 140.

The combination distribution unit 150 may couple base station signalsoutput from a plurality of base station signal processing units 140 andmay transmit the coupled base station signals to at least one lightdistribution unit (not shown). The light distribution unit may convertthe coupled base station signals to light signals and may transmit thelight signals to a plurality of remote devices (not shown) formed in aremote place. The remote devices may photoelectrically convert thetransmitted light signals and may perform a signal process such asfiltering or amplification on the converted base station signals perfrequency band or per at least two frequency bands, and may transmit thebase station signals to a user terminal by radiating the base stationsignals through an antenna.

The control unit 160 may control components included in the base stationinterface device 100 such as the base station signal matching unit 130or the base station signal processing unit 140, and may monitor a stateof each of the components.

Not shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the control unit 160 may be electricallyconnected to a plurality of base station signal matching units 130 or aplurality of base station signal processing units 140 through theinterface board 120, and may transmit and receive predetermined signals(for example, control signals, state signals, etc.) to/from theplurality of base station signal matching units 130 or the plurality ofbase station signal processing units 140 through the interface board120.

The fan unit 170 may remove heat from the base station signal matchingunit 130 and may include a plurality of fans. The plurality of fan maybe formed to cool at least two base station signal matching units 130,but may also be formed to cool the plurality of base station signalmatching units 130, respectively.

The control unit 160 may control the drive of the fan unit 170. Thiswill be described in detail later below.

First, in the base station interface device 100 according to anembodiment of the inventive concept, the interface board 120 may includea first sensing connector 125, and the base station signal matching unit130 may include a second sensing connector 135. The first sensingconnector 125, which is disposed adjacent to the relay connector 121,may be exposed to an upper side of the first surface 120 s 1 of theinterface board 120 toward the first mounting location 112, and thesecond sensing connector 135, which is disposed adjacent to the firstconnector 131, may be configured the first sensing connector 125 to forma ground state when the second sensing connector 135 is coupled to thefirst sensing connector 125.

The control unit 160 may sense whether the first sensing connector 125grounds the second sensing connector 135 according to whether the firstsensing connector 125 is coupled to the second sensing connector 135.Therefore, the control unit 160 may sense whether the base stationsignal matching unit 130 is connected to the interface board 120, andmay control an operation of the fan unit 170 according to the sensingresult.

In more detail, when the control unit 160 senses that the first sensingconnector 125 is coupled to the second sensing connector 135 and isgrounded, the control unit 160 may remove heat from the base stationsignal matching device 130 including the second sensing connector 135 bydriving the fan unit 170 in a manner where a fan on the base stationsignal matching device 130 including the second sensing connector 135 isoperated.

In the base station interface device 100, the control unit 160 maycontrol the drive of the fan unit 170 according to a state of the basestation signal matching unit 130, in more detail, according to whetherthe base station signal matching unit 130 is properly connected to theinterface board 120 and operated. Therefore, equipment damage ormalfunction may be prevented by performing a stable heat dissipationfunction while minimizing waste of power consumption.

Structures of the first and second sensing connectors 125 and 135 willbe described in detail later below referring to FIGS. 8 and 9.

FIG. 5 is a partial cross-sectional view of a relay connector accordingto an embodiment of the inventive concept, FIG. 6 is a partialcross-sectional view of a first connector according to an embodiment ofthe inventive concept, and FIG. 7 is a partial cross-sectional view of asecond connector according to an embodiment of the inventive concept.The relay connector, the first connector, and the second connector ofFIGS. 5 to 7 correspond to the relay connector 121, the first connector131, and the second connector 141 described with reference to FIGS. 1through 4, respectively. Hereinafter, repeated descriptions of FIGS. 1to 4 are omitted and only specific constitutions and couplingrelationships of the relay connector 121, and the first and secondconnectors 131 and 141 are described.

Referring to FIG. 5, the relay connector 121, which is provided in theinterface board 120 and the both ends are respectively coupled tocorresponding connectors of the first and second connectors 131 and 141,may electrically connect the base station signal matching unit 130 andthe base station signal processing unit 140.

The relay connector 121 may include a relay connector contact 122, arelay connector body 123, and a relay connector insulating member 124.

The relay connector contact 122 may extend to penetrate through a mainbody of the interface board 120, wherein one end of the relay connectorcontact 122 may contact a first connector contact 132 of the firstconnector 131, and the other end of the relay connector contact 122 maycontact a second connector contact 142 of the second connector 141.Therefore, a signal (for example, a base station signal having anadjusted power level) flowing the first connector contact 132 may betransmitted to the second connector contact 142 through the relayconnector contact 122, and the base station signal having an adjustedpower level may be processed according to a service condition of afrequency band set in advance in the base station signal processing unit140.

One side of the relay connector contact 122 may include a groove 122 aand the other side may include a projecting fin 122 b. The relayconnector contact 122 and the first connector contact 132 may bephysically and electrically connected to each other as a projecting fin132 a (described later below) of the first connector contact 132 isinserted in the one side of the relay connector contact 122, that is,the groove 122 a. Furthermore, the relay connector contact 122 and thesecond connector contact 142 may be physically and electricallyconnected to each other as the other side of the relay connector contact122, that is, the projecting fin 122 b is inserted in a groove 142 a(described later below) of the second connector contact 142. The relayconnector contact 122 may include a conductive material such as a metalmaterial, for example, gold.

The relay connector body 123 may protect the relay connector contact 122from outside and may surround the relay connector contact 122. The relayconnector body 123, to stably protect the relay connector contact 122,may include a conductive material having a predetermined strength suchas a metal material, for example, nickel.

The relay connector insulating member 124 may be located between therelay connector contact 122 and at least a part of the relay connectorbody 123 and may prevent a short-circuit between the relay connectorcontact 122 and the relay connector body 123. The relay connectorinsulating member 124 may include an insulating material, for example,polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE).

The relay connector insulating member 124 may include two parts that aredistinguished by shape and/or composition, for example, a part towardthe first connector 131 and a part toward the second connector 141.Furthermore, the relay connector insulating member 124 may contact somepart of an outer peripheral surface of the relay connector contact 122but may be spaced apart from the other part and between which an emptyspace 123 c is interposed. When the relay connector insulating member124 is combined with the second connector 141, some of the secondconnector contact 142 and a second connector insulating member 144 ofthe second connector 141 may be inserted in the empty space 123 c.

According to an embodiment, the relay connector body 123 may furtherinclude a clip unit 123 a and an elastic member 123 b. The clip unit 123a may couple the relay connector 121 penetrating through a main body ofthe interface board 120 to the main body of the interface board 120 andmay support the relay connector 121. The elastic member 123 b, disposedon a tip toward the second connector 141, may maintain the couplingstate by compensating an alignment error which occurs when the relayconnector 121 is coupled to the second connector 141. In more detail,the elastic member 123 b may compensate a misalignment because theelastic member 123 b can be elastically deformed in a coupling directionof the relay connector 121 and the second connector 141, and may firmlymaintain the coupling state of the relay connector 121 and the secondconnector 141 by being restored and applying an elastic force to thesecond connector 141 when the relay connector 121 is coupled to thesecond connector 141.

In some embodiments, the elastic member 123 b may include a plurality ofopened pieces arranged in a circle on an outer peripheral surface of atip of the relay connector body 123. Furthermore, at least some of theplurality of opened pieces may become narrower inward when the relayconnector 121 is inserted in the second connector 141, and the narrowedopened pieces may become wider outward after the relay connector 121 isinserted in the second connector 141 and the elastic member 123 b may berestored to an original location. However, the inventive concept is notlimited thereto. The elastic member 123 b may be formed in variousstructures.

According to an embodiment, the relay connector body 123 may include acomplementary tapered portion 123 d, in which a diameter of thecomplementary tapered portion 123 d becomes smaller toward the firstconnector 131. The complementary tapered portion 123 d may have a slopein a direction opposite to a tapered portion 133 d of the firstconnector 131, and may compensate a misalignment between the relayconnector body 123 and the first connector body 133 when the relayconnector body 123 is inserted in the first connector body 133 of thefirst connector 131.

Referring to FIG. 6, the first connector 131 provided in the basestation signal matching unit 130 may transmit a base station signal tothe relay connector 121, in which the base station signal has a loweredpower level by being coupled to the relay connector 121.

The first connector 131 may include the first connector contact 132, thefirst connector body 133, and a first connector insulating member 134.

The first connector contact 132 may contact the relay connector contact122. In detail, the first connector contact 132 may physically andelectrically contact the relay connector contact 122 by a method ofinserting the projecting fin 132 a of the first connector contact 132 tothe groove 122 a formed in the one side of the relay connector contact122. The first connector contact 132 may include a conductive materialsuch as a metal material, for example, gold.

The first connector body 133 may protect the first connector contact 132from outside and may surround the first connector contact 132. The firstconnector body 133 may include a conductive material having apredetermined strength to stably protect the first connector contact132.

The first connector insulating member 134 may be located between thefirst connector contact 132 and at least a part of the first connectorbody 133 and may prevent a short-circuit between the first connectorcontact 132 and the first connector body 133. The first connectorinsulating member 134 may include an insulating material.

According to an embodiment, the first connector body 133 may include afirst cap 133 a and a first support unit 133 b supporting the first cap133 a. The first cap 133 a may be located adjacent to the relayconnector 121, and the first support unit 133 b may be located in aregion far from the relay connector 121, for example, the base stationsignal matching unit 130.

The first connector insulating member 134 may be located between thefirst support unit 133 b and the first connector contact 132, and forexample, an empty space 133 c but not the first connector insulatingmember 134 may be formed between the first cap 133 a and the firstconnector contact 132. When the first connector 131 is coupled to therelay connector 121, some of the relay connector body 123, the relayconnector insulating member 124, and the relay connector contact 122 maybe inserted in the empty space 133 c.

In order to smoothly couple the first connector 131 to the relayconnector 121, the first cap 133 a of the first connector body 133 mayinclude the tapered portion 133 d, in which a diameter of the taperedportion 133 d becomes larger toward the relay connector 121. Therefore,when the relay connector 121 is inserted in and coupled to the firstconnector 131, an alignment error may be compensated by the taperedportion 133 d even if the relay connector 121 and the first connector131 are not accurately aligned.

Referring to FIG. 7, the second connector 141 provided in the basestation signal processing unit 140 may receive a base station signalfrom the relay connector 121 by being coupled to the relay connector121.

The second connector 141 may include the second connector contact 142, asecond connector body 143, and the second connector insulating member144.

The second connector contact 142 may contact the relay connector contact122. In detail, the second connector contact 142 may physically andelectrically contact the relay connector contact 122 by a method ofinserting the projecting fin 122 b formed on the other side of the relayconnector contact 122 to the groove 142 a of the second connectorcontact 142. The second connector contact 142 may include a conductivematerial such as a metal material, for example, gold.

The second connector body 143 may protect the second connector contact142 from outside and may surround the second connector contact 142. Thesecond connector body 143 may include a conductive material having apredetermined strength to stably protect the second connector contact142.

The second connector insulating member 144 may be located between thesecond connector contact 142 and at least a part of the second connectorbody 143 and may prevent a short-circuit between the second connectorcontact 142 and the second connector body 143. The second connectorinsulating member 144 may include an insulating material.

According to an exemplary embodiment, an empty space 143 a may be formedin at least some areas between the second connector body 143 and thesecond connector insulating member 144. The empty space 143 a may beadjacent to the relay connector 121 and some of the relay connector body123 and the relay connector insulating member 124 may be inserted in theempty space 143 a when the second connector 141 is coupled to the relayconnector 121.

In order to smoothly couple the second connector 141 to the relayconnector 121, the second connector body 143 may include a taperedportion 143 b, in which a diameter of the tapered portion 143 b becomeslarger toward the relay connector 121. Therefore, when the relayconnector 121 is inserted in and coupled to the second connector 141, analignment error may be compensated by the tapered portion 143 d even iflocations of the relay connector 121 and the second connector 141 arenot accurately matched to each other.

FIG. 8 is a partial cross-sectional view of a first sensing connectoraccording to an embodiment of the inventive concept, and FIG. 9 is apartial cross-sectional view of a second sensing connector according toan embodiment of the inventive concept. The first and second sensingconnectors of FIGS. 8 and 9 correspond to the first and second sensingconnectors 125 and 135 described with reference to FIGS. 1 through 4,respectively. Hereinafter, repeated descriptions of FIGS. 1 to 4 areomitted and only specific constitutions and coupling relationships ofthe first and second sensing connectors 125 and 135 are described.

Referring to FIG. 8, the first sensing connector 125, which is providedin the interface board 120 and coupled to the second sensing connector135, may sense mounting of the base station signal matching unit 130,that is, a connection state of the base station signal matching unit 130and the interface board 120 by the control unit 160 (see FIG. 1).

The first sensing connector 125 may include a first sensing connectorcontact 126, a first sensing connector body 127, and a first sensingconnector insulating member.

The first sensing connector contact 126 may contact a second sensingconnector contact 136 of the second sensing connector 135. The firstsensing connector contact 126, which includes a groove 126 a, may bephysically and electrically connected to the second sensing connectorcontact 136 by a method of inserting a projecting fin 136 a of thesecond sensing connector contact 136 to the groove 126 a. The firstsensing connector contact 126 may include a conductive material.

The first sensing connector body 127 may protect the first sensingconnector contact 126 from outside and may surround the first sensingconnector contact 126. The first sensing connector body 127 may includea conductive material having a predetermined strength to stably protectthe first sensing connector contact 126.

The first sensing connector insulating member 128 may be located betweenthe first sensing connector contact 126 and at least a part of the firstsensing connector body 127 and may prevent a short-circuit between thefirst sensing connector contact 126 and the first sensing connector body127. The first sensing connector insulating member 128 may include aninsulating material.

According to an embodiment, the first sensing connector body 127 mayinclude a complementary tapered portion 127 a, in which a diameter ofthe complementary tapered portion 127 a becomes smaller toward thesecond sensing connector 135. The complementary tapered portion 127 amay have a slope in a direction opposite to a tapered portion 137 d ofthe second sensing connector 135, and may compensate a misalignmentbetween the first sensing connector body 127 and a second sensingconnector body 137 when the first sensing connector body 127 is insertedin the second sensing connector body 137 of the second sensing connector135.

Referring to FIG. 9, the second sensing connector 135, which is providedin the base station signal matching unit 130 and coupled to the firstsensing connector 125, may sense a connection state of the base stationsignal matching unit 130 and the interface board 120 by the control unit160 (see FIG. 1).

The second sensing connector 135 may include the second sensingconnector contact 136 and the second sensing connector body 137. Thesecond sensing connector contact 136 may be physically and electricallyconnected to the first sensing connector contact 126 through coupling ofa groove and a projecting fin, and may include a conductive material.

The second sensing connector body 137 may protect the second sensingconnector contact 136 from outside and may surround the second sensingconnector contact 136. The second sensing connector body 137 may includea conductive material having a predetermined strength to stably protectthe second sensing connector contact 136.

Meanwhile, the second sensing connector body 137 may directly contact atleast a part of the second sensing connector contact 136 unlike thefirst connector 131 of the base station signal matching unit 130 (orunlike the second connector 141 of the base station signal processingunit 140).

Therefore, the second sensing connector body 137 that is a ground andthe second sensing connector contact 136 are short circuited, and thus,both the second sensing connector body 137 and the second sensingconnector contact 136 may function as a ground, and the control unit 160(see FIG. 1) may sense a connection state of the base station signalmatching unit 130 and the interface board 120 by sensing a current or avoltage according to a ground state which is formed when the secondsensing connector 135 is coupled to the first sensing connector 125. Asdescribed above with reference to FIGS. 1 through 4, the control unit160 may control the fan unit 170 based on the sensing result of theconnection state of the base station signal matching unit 130 and theinterface board 120.

According to an exemplary embodiment, the second sensing connector body137 may include a second cap 137 a and a second support unit 137 bsupporting the second cap 137 a. The second cap 137 a may be locatedadjacent to the first sensing connector 125, and the second support unit137 b may be located in a region far from the first sensing connector125, for example, the base station signal matching unit 130.

The second support unit 137 b may contact the second sensing connectorcontact 136, and the second cap 137 a and the second sensing connectorcontact 136 may be spaced apart from each other without contacting eachother and between which an empty space 137 c is interposed. When thefirst sensing connector 125 is coupled to the second sensing connector135, some of the first sensing connector body 127, the first sensingconnector insulating member 128, and the first sensing connector contact126 may be inserted in the empty space 137 c.

In order to smoothly couple the first sensing connector 125 to thesecond sensing connector 135, the second cap 137 a of the second sensingconnector body 137 may include the tapered portion 137 d, in which adiameter of the tapered portion 137 d becomes larger toward the firstsensing connector 125. Therefore, when the first sensing connector 125is inserted in and coupled to the second sensing connector 135, thefirst sensing connector 125 may be accurately coupled to the secondsensing connector 135 by the tapered portion 137 d even if locations ofthe first sensing connector 125 and the second sensing connector 135 arenot accurately matched to each other.

According to an embodiment of the inventive concept, a base stationinterface device may efficiently use a limited space by arranging a basestation signal matching unit and a base station signal processing unitin the same plane and in a row.

Furthermore, according to an embodiment of the inventive concept, a basestation interface device, by electrically connecting a base stationsignal matching unit and a base station signal processing unit by usingconnectors without a cable, may improve convenience of management for amanager and may stably protect the connection between the units fromoutside.

It should be understood that embodiments described herein should beconsidered in a descriptive sense only and not for purposes oflimitation. Descriptions of features or aspects within each embodimentshould typically be considered as available for other similar featuresor aspects in other embodiments.

While one or more embodiments have been described with reference to thefigures, it will be understood by those of ordinary skill in the artthat various changes in form and details may be made therein withoutdeparting from the spirit and scope as defined by the following claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A base station interface device, comprising: aninterface board, which is located in a housing and has a first surfaceand a second surface opposite to the first surface, comprising a relayconnector of which one end is exposed on the first surface and anopposite end is exposed on the second surface; a base station signalmatching unit mounted on the first surface and comprising a firstconnector coupled to the one end of the relay connector; and a basestation signal processing unit mounted on the second surface andcomprising a second connector coupled to the opposite end of the relayconnector, wherein, when the one end of the relay connector is coupledto the first connector and the opposite end of the relay connector iscoupled to the second connector, at least one base station signal istransmitted from the base station signal matching unit to the basestation signal processing unit through the relay connector.
 2. The basestation interface device of claim 1, wherein the relay connectorcomprises: a relay connector contact wherein one end contacts a firstconnector contact of the first connector and the opposite end contacts asecond connector contact of the second connector; a relay connector bodyconfigured to surround the relay connector contact; and a relayconnector insulating member located between the relay connector contactand at least a part of the relay connector body.
 3. The base stationinterface device of claim 2, wherein the first connector comprises atapered portion, wherein a diameter of the tapered portion becomeslarger toward the relay connector, and wherein the relay connector bodycomprises a complementary tapered portion, wherein a diameter of thecomplementary tapered portion becomes smaller toward the firstconnector.
 4. The base station interface device of claim 2, wherein thesecond connector comprises a tapered portion, wherein a diameter of thetapered portion becomes larger toward the relay connector, and whereinthe relay connector body comprises an elastic member which is disposedon a tip toward the second connector and capable of being elasticallydeformed in a direction crossing a coupling direction of the secondconnector and the relay connector when the second connector is coupledto the relay connector.
 5. The base station interface device of claim 1,wherein the relay connector penetrates through a main body of theinterface board, wherein the one end is exposed on the first surface andthe opposite end is exposed on the second surface.
 6. The base stationinterface device of claim 1, wherein at least a part of the relayconnector is inserted in and coupled to the first connector.
 7. The basestation interface device of claim 1, wherein at least a part of therelay connector is inserted in and coupled to the second connector. 8.The base station interface device of claim 1, wherein the firstconnector comprises: a first connector contact configured to contact arelay connector contact of the relay connector; a first connector bodyconfigured to surround the first connector contact; and a firstconnector insulating member located between the first connector contactand at least a part of the first connector body.
 9. The base stationinterface device of claim 8, wherein the first connector body comprises:a first cap comprising a tapered portion, wherein a diameter of thetapered portion becomes larger toward the relay connector; and a firstsupport unit configured to support the first cap.
 10. The base stationinterface device of claim 1, wherein the second connector comprises: asecond connector contact configured to contact a relay connector contactof the relay connector; a second connector body configured to surroundthe second connector contact and form a tapered portion, wherein adiameter of the tapered portion becomes larger toward the relayconnector; and a second connector insulating member located between thesecond connector contact and at least a part of the second connectorbody.
 11. The base station interface device of claim 1, wherein theinterface board comprises a first sensing connector distinct from therelay connector, wherein one end of the first sensing connector isexposed on the first surface wherein the base station signal matchingunit comprises a second sensing connector to be coupled to the firstsensing connector, and wherein the first sensing connector and thesecond sensing connector are connectors for sensing a connection betweenthe interface board and the base station signal matching unit.
 12. Thebase station interface device of claim 11, wherein at least a part ofthe first sensing connector is inserted in and coupled to the secondsensing connector.
 13. The base station interface device of claim 11,wherein the second sensing connector comprises a sensing connectortapered portion, wherein a diameter of the sensing connector taperedportion becomes larger toward the first sensing connector.
 14. The basestation interface device of claim 11, wherein the second sensingconnector comprises: a second sensing connector contact configured tocontact a first sensing connector contact of the first sensingconnector; and a second sensing connector body configured to surroundthe second sensing connector contact, wherein the second sensingconnector contact and at least a part of the second sensing connectorbody directly contact to each other.
 15. A base station interface devicecomprising: an interface board, which is located in a housing and has afirst surface and a second surface opposite to the first surface,comprising: a relay connector of which one end is exposed on the firstsurface and an opposite end is exposed on the second surface; and afirst sensing connector of which one end is exposed on the firstsurface; a base station signal matching unit mounted on the firstsurface and comprising a first connector coupled to the one end of therelay connector and a second sensing connector to be coupled to thefirst sensing connector; a base station signal processing unit mountedon the second surface and comprising a second connector coupled to theopposite end of the relay connector; and a control unit configured tosense a connection between the interface board and the base stationsignal matching unit through a coupling of the first sensing connectorand the second sensing connector.
 16. The base station interface deviceof claim 15, further comprising: a fan unit, which is disposed adjacentto the base station signal matching unit, configured to remove heat fromthe base station signal matching unit, and wherein the control unitdrives the fan unit when the connection between the interface board andthe base station signal matching unit is sensed.